Monsters cover art

Monsters

What Do We Do with Great Art by Bad People?

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Monsters

By: Claire Dederer
Narrated by: Claire Dederer
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About this listen

A passionate, provocative and blisteringly smart interrogation of how we experience art in the age of #MeToo, and whether we can separate an artist's work from their biography.

What do we do with the art of monstrous men? Can we love the work of Roman Polanski and Michael Jackson, Hemingway and Picasso? Should we love it? Does genius deserve special dispensation? Is history an excuse? What makes women artists monstrous? And what should we do with beauty, and with our unruly feelings about it?

Claire Dederer explores these questions and our relationships with the artists whose behaviour disrupts our ability to apprehend the work on its own terms. She interrogates her own responses and her own behaviour, and she pushes the fan, and the listener, to do the same. Morally wise, deeply considered and sharply written, Monsters gets to the heart of one of our most pressing conversations.

©2023 Claire Dederer (P)2023 Penguin Audio Art Ethics & Morality Literary History & Criticism Philosophy Social Sciences

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Critic reviews

"Monsters is an incredible book, the best work of criticism I have read in a very long time. It's thrillingly sharp, appropriately doubtful, and more fun than you would believe, given the pressing seriousness of the subject matter. Claire Dederer's mind is a wonder, her erudition too; I now want her to apply them to everything I'm interested in so I can think about them differently." (Nick Hornby)

"An exhilarating, shape-shifting exploration of the perilous boundaries between art and life. This timely book inhabits both the marvellous and the monstrous with generosity and wit." (Jenny Offill)

"A blisteringly erudite and entertaining read. Dederer holds the moral ambiguity of her subject matter, landing her arguments with precision and flair. It's a book that deserves to be widely read and will provoke many conversations." (Nathan Filer)
All stars
Most relevant
Clear-eyed and insightful book-length essay on a thorny issue given the endless revelations and realisations about the people who make the art we value

Timely and Timeless sadly

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To sum it up using the 15 words it requires, I would have to say: meh.

I am no better off from listening to this

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I got this book after hearing Mark Kermode's recommendation on his podcast, Take. Initally, I found the subjects covered in the early chapters to be varied and of great interest. However, I fell away from the book once the author began to look in a more inward direction at her perceived failings as a Mother. I've listened to 6hrs of the 8hr 14mins. I probably started to lose interest around Chapter 9, Am I a Monster?, as this was the point, in my opinion, that the author began to deviated from the books central concept.

Early Chapters are very thought provoking,

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I heard extracts of this book and decided it was worth a listen. The early chapters are great and were really engaging and thought provoking. I felt it lost it's way towards the end as it became a little too much about the author rather than the artists. But it was enjoyable, entertaining and eye opening. I have already started recommending it to friends to read.

A fascinating exploration of a moral dilemma

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Too much emphasis on what the author thinks and feels. She goes down self indulgent rabbit holes for example her views on the film Manhattan. Some very problematic comparisons for me that seem to almost victim blame. Great concept and overall interesting but it needs more editing and direction from its editors.

Good concept but problematic

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